Gastro-protective strategies in primary care in Italy: the "Gas.Pro." survey
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Risk of gastrointestinal injury is relevant among users of anti-inflammatory or cardio-protective drugs. Adequate gastro-protection is warranted in high-risk patients.
AIM: To assess the perceptions and practices of Italian primary care physicians regarding gastro-protective strategies.
METHODS: Nationwide cross-sectional observational study. A 14-question survey questionnaire was administered to 112 primary care physicians throughout Italy. Data collection covered consecutive outpatient candidates for the prescription of a potentially GI harmful medication, observed in the physicians' office over a 3-week period.
RESULTS: Cohort included 3943 cases (2489 naïve and 1463 chronic NSAID/ASA users). Mean age and prevalence of cardiovascular comorbidity were significantly higher in the latter subgroup. Non-selective NSAIDs and low-dose aspirin were the most commonly prescribed drugs. Combined NSAIDS/ASA plus steroids/anticoagulant/antiplatelets were recorded in 161 cases. Helicobacter pylori status was known in only 38% of naïve and 33.2% of chronic users, being negative in 85.3% and 89.5%, respectively. When positive, H. pylori was eradicated by almost all physicians (97.9%), but in case of unknown H. pylori status, the presence of infection was investigated in only 8.6% and 14.9% of patients in the two subgroups. Gastro-protection was endorsed in 80.7% of patients, mostly PPIs (91%). In patients aged over 70, pantoprazole and lansoprazole were the preferred…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a cross-sectional, done in people. Its evidence level is 4 of 5 (Low · observational). Observational designs can show an association but not prove cause.
Read the paper
Related studies
- The Prediction of the In Vitro Release Curves for PLGA-Based Drug Delivery Systems with Neural Networks
- Promising Ursolic Acid as a Novel Antituberculosis Agent: Current Progress and Challenges
- Proof of principle concept for the analysis and functional prediction of rare genetic variants in the CYP2C19 and CYP2D6 genes
- Fabrication, characterization, and docking studies of furosemide-loaded nanosponges using the emulsion solvent diffusion method
- The Effect of Concomitant Administration of Proton Pump Inhibitors on the Pharmacokinetics of CDK4/6 Inhibitors in Rats: Implications for the Evaluation of Hepatic and Transporter-Mediated Drug–Drug Interactions
- Mining the Metabolic Capacity of Clostridium sporogenes Aided by Machine Learning
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.